


Makeup, Girl Talks, and Moving On

by SmolGooDragon



Category: Fire Emblem Echoes: Mou Hitori no Eiyuu Ou | Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, Fire Emblem Series
Genre: (gosh bless these two sweeties), Domestic Fluff, Gen, Parental Sonya, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-12
Updated: 2017-12-12
Packaged: 2019-02-13 21:51:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12993249
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmolGooDragon/pseuds/SmolGooDragon
Summary: Genny wants to try on makeup in order to overcome her fears.





	Makeup, Girl Talks, and Moving On

**Author's Note:**

> Written because I sorely crave that Parental!Sonya content with her little sheep daughter. Hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Sonya sighs, tapping her nails on her desk in irritation. Yet again, she’s hit a roadblock on her research… something that’s been happening far too often since her last breakthrough over three months ago.

She leans back in her chair, huffing as she stares at the ceiling. After all this time, she hasn’t progressed very far at all in her search for a cure to becoming a witch. It’s helped, having a home to call her own- courtesy of a very gracious Queen Celica- but her failure to find any solid answers to her driving question has been driving her nuts.

 

Maybe she should take a vacation. The ocean is supposedly nice this time of year…

 

“U-um- Sonya?”

 

Sonya blinks before idly turning her head to look at the door to her study. There, peeking from the doorway, is a small, delicate figure she’s grown quite fond of seeing.

“Ah, hello, Genny.”

The girl quietly rubs her arm and takes an awkward step into the doorway. “Sorry if I’m interrupting you…”

Sonya pauses before shrugging. “Mm, I’d hardly say you’re interrupting me. I was taking a break from my research, anyways. What’s the matter?”

Genny shifts nervously, staring down at the ground. “I… have a favor to ask you.”

Sonya quirks an eyebrow. “Go on, I don’t bite. What do you need?”

“I… I wanna try makeup. Like the stuff you wear.”

 

That… was not what Sonya had been an expecting. She takes a moment to pause in surprise before she clears her throat.

“Didn’t you tell me before that you don’t like makeup? That it reminds you of your mother?”

Genny continues to awkwardly rub her arm. “I- Well, yes, but.” She hesitates before letting out a sigh. “I… I want to give it a try. So maybe I’ll… um… be a little more comfortable around makeup, you know?”

Sonya sits up straighter in her chair, chewing her lip thoughtfully. It only takes her a moment to get to her feet, her stilettos clacking on the floor decisively. “Can’t hurt to try. Anything specific you want me to help you with?”

Genny pauses, an uncertain look on her face. “Um… I… I don’t know where to start. I don’t really know anything about makeup…”

Sonya clicks her tongue, drumming her fingers on her chin. Right, she wouldn’t have any experience with this sort of thing. Where to start, indeed.

“Mmm… Alright. Leave it to me.”

Sonya marches out of the study and towards her room. Genny follows her, though she still looks very uncertain.

The older priestess guides Genny to a chair next to a mirror, gently sitting her down. Sonya takes a few moments to rummage through and gather her supplies-  _ damn, where’d she put that blending brush _ \- before resting a hand on Genny’s shoulder in an attempt to comfort the girl.

“We’ll start with some simple eyeshadow. I’ll just need you to close your eyes… and don’t squeeze them shut. Try to relax as much as you can.”

“Mmph.” Genny’s lips twist into a concerned frown but she otherwise does as told, taking a deep breath. “Okay… I’m ready.”

Sonya kneels down so that she’s at about eye level with Genny before pulling out a brush and concealer. She pauses briefly- she’s really only done her own makeup for the past few years, but it shouldn’t be too difficult to do someone else’s…

She begins to apply the concealer beneath Genny’s eyebrow and on her eyelid, but she doesn’t get very far before Genny lets out a startled squeak and flinches, her eyes snapping open.

“Oh-! It tickles!”

Sonya can’t help but smirk a little in amusement. “It gets easier when you’re used to it. Just try to hold still, alright?”

Genny takes a deep breath before closing her eyes once more. “Okay… yes, sorry. Please keep going.”

Sonya hums in agreement, returning to her task of applying- and blending- the concealer. Fortunately enough, Genny (mostly) is able to hold still and keep her eyelids relaxed through the rest of the process. 

As Sonya pulls out a softer brush to begin on making an eyeshadow gradient, Genny quietly pipes up.

“Um… Sonya? If you don’t mind me asking… who taught you how to do makeup?”

 

_ Mmm… apply the lighter shade here, and the darker shade here… _

 

Sonya frowns a little, partially in concentration, partially in remembrance. “I learned from my two older sisters, actually.”

Genny perks up; she never gets to hear much about Sonya’s childhood, other than the knowledge that the woman had been abandoned at a priory like herself, so any tidbit of information Sonya gives up is something to be treasured.

“What were your sisters like?”

Sonya lets out a quiet, thoughtful ‘hm’ as she begins to blend the eyeshadow. “They both stood out in a crowd, that’s for sure. The eldest, Marla, could be rather serious and stern- she took it upon herself to be both our sister and our mother- but she had a good heart. Now, Hestia… she was witty, with a mind sharper than any sword. She was very independent, but she was also one of the most fiercely-loyal people I have ever met.”

Genny does her best to avoid squirming when Sonya starts to apply finishing touches. “They sound pretty nice!”

“They were. They kept me company while we grew up in the priory,” Sonya softly hums, “And they taught me all sorts of things, like how to style my hair for formal events. And sometimes we would manage to get our hands on makeup, which we tried out on each other when the clerics weren’t looking. We would all practice on each other- which ended up being more error than trial, but we always had fun.”

Sonya chews her lip absently before returning her attention to Genny. “Here, open your eyes. Don’t look in the mirror quite yet, but I need to check my work here.”

Genny’s eyes flutter open, a slight frown on her face at the odd sensation of makeup on her eyelids. Although tempted, she avoids looking at the mirror and instead looks up curiously to meet Sonya’s appraising gaze.

Sonya eyes Genny before nodding sagely. “Good, good. Alright, I’ll need you to close your eyes again so I can apply eyeliner.”

Genny pauses before nodding and complying with Sonya’s request, trying hard not to squeeze her eyes too tightly shut.

“Juuust a warning, but, ah. This is probably gonna tickle and feel even weirder than the eyeshadow.”

The girl frowns, her brows furrowing, before she nods firmly. “O-okay.”

Sonya clicks her tongue as she readies the supplies, and then carefully begins. A deep, thoughtful silence envelops the two, but it’s certainly not uncomfortable. After a few minutes (with Genny arguably being far more still and obedient than Sonya ever was when her sisters were applying makeup, that was for sure), Sonya has moved on from a simple, yet elegant, winged eyeliner to apply a light touch of foundation to Genny’s face. Nothing fancy, really; Sonya doesn’t want to spend an hour or so perfecting dramatic makeup that the girl might not even like. Starting off small is usually a good way to go, she’s pretty sure- and if Genny decides she likes it, they can expand from there.

 

After what feels like another long moment of silence as Sonya works on the finishing touches, Genny pipes up once more.

“Sonya, what happened to your sisters?”

The woman’s fingers nearly twitch, a grimace scrunching her face up. Her hands move away from Genny’s face. 

The younger girl hesitantly flutters her eyes open before looking up at Sonya curiously- and with just a hint of trepidation. She hopes she isn’t pushing the line here…

Sonya swallows before absently running a hand through her hair.

_ Of course she doesn’t know. I never got around to telling her, did I…? _

She lets out a heavy sigh before leaning forward again. “Here, Genny. Close your eyes so I can work on this one spot a little more.”

Genny frowns before reluctantly doing as she’s told.

 

Another moment of silence.

 

Sonya sighs again before speaking up. “Do you remember Jedah, my... Mmph. My  _ father. _ ” she lingers on the word with a trace of disgust. “The one I told you about, the one that abandoned my sisters and me in the priory?”

Genny is about to nod but decides against the risk of smearing whatever Sonya is putting on her face, so she gives a simple ‘mmhm’ in response.

Sonya frowns, clicking her tongue. “I… And you know how I’ve been trying to find a cure for those who have been turned into witches, yes?”

 

“...Ah-?” Genny mumbles, a bad feeling suddenly welling up in her head.

She can sense the connection between those two things, but gods, if she’s right… for Sonya’s sake, she  _ really  _ doesn’t want to be right.

 

“Long story short… he. He sacrificed them both to Duma in exchange for power. He was going to use me, too, but,” Sonya hums uncomfortably. “I escaped, as you can probably tell.”

 

Genny opens and closes her mouth, about to say something but deciding against it. A few seconds pass and she opens her eyes, her brows furrowed in concern. “I… I’m so sorry, Sonya, I didn’t know-”

Sonya idly waves her hand, glancing to the side. Her lip twitches up as though she wants to smile, to play it off, something- but it falls flat very quickly. “It’s alright, little one. You couldn’t have known, and it was an honest question.” She pauses before softly brushing away a stray curl of hair from Genny’s face. “You needn’t trouble yourself with it, alright? You just focus on yourself; you don’t need my problems on top of your own.”

Genny nips at the inside of her cheek, her brows furrowing even more. “Well… you shouldn’t have to carry all of your problems all by yourself, either. I know I probably don’t understand much, and I’m still a lot younger than you, but I can still listen whenever you need someone to talk to. I promise.”

Sonya pauses before softly snorting. “Not  _ that _ much younger, Genny.”

“But aren’t you twenty-sev-”

“ _ Shh. _ Unimportant.” Sonya huffs, her gaze subtly softening as she meets the younger girl’s gaze. “Regardless, I will keep your offer in mind. Thank you. But for now…” Sonya puffs up a little bit, a slightly anticipatory look in her eyes. “Why don’t you take a look in the mirror?”

 

Genny’s mouth opens. She slowly closes it once more, pursing her lips in hesitation.

 

It takes a moment, but she finally turns around, more than a little afraid, but at the same time…

 

_ Oh. _

 

Genny blinks, her fingertips drifting against her left cheek. It wasn’t as dramatic a change as she had been expecting, no. She still recognized the small, slightly baby-faced reflection before her. But her eyes stood out more, and the contours of her face seemed just a little sharper than they had been before. She just looks a little older, if anything.

 

_ Either way, she has to admit… it doesn’t look half-bad. _

 

“Sooo, what do you think?” Sonya hums, leaning in just a bit.

Genny bats her eyes ( _ oh wow her eyelashes are dark _ ) before glancing up at Sonya and clicking her tongue. “It’s weird, but it’s not… bad.” She pauses, glancing once more to the mirror. “I… mm. I kinda… like it? It looks, well. Pretty…”

The corner of Sonya’s mouth tilts up into a smile, looking genuinely pleased with Genny’s reaction. “You’re right, it is a bit weird. But I agree, it looks good on you.”

Genny’s cheeks heat up a little, a shy smile on her face. “Thank- thank you, Sonya! I, um… I still need time to get used to it, but I think I feel a little better about it, in general. Maybe, uh… maybe you could show me how to do it myself, some other day…?”

Sonya sets aside all of her makeup tools before patting Genny’s head affectionately. “Of course. You know I’m always glad to help you out, little one. Now, what say we go get some lunch, hm?”

Genny beams up at Sonya, her eyes brightening. “Okay!”

 

As Sonya makes her way down the hall, an eager Genny in tow, she can’t help a quiet, contented sigh escaping her lips.

 

_ What in the world did I do to deserve someone like you, Genny…? _

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed, please drop a comment and/or some kudos! They really help motivate me to continue working hard on stories like these.  
> -  
> Want to keep up on my writing progress, request what I should write next, or scream into the void with me? Check out my writing blog on Tumblr, @smolgoodragon!


End file.
